I spent 38 years roaming the skies over North America, Asia and Europe and would like to share those experiences with others. Landing, 12R, MSP, 757-300, 4/16/04

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Returning to Asia

Let me address a point made earlier by Mark Lawrence.

Mark asked about the farmers home located smack dab in the middle of Narita Airport.

Here it is.

Mark, here's the photo to which you referred. This is the farmers home who absolutely, unequivocally, with out hesitation, refused to move as eminent domain forced others out. The story goes that the emperor gave either him or his family this land and he wasn't leaving and that's that! So they constructed NRT around him and cordoned him off. His home is located between taxiway Charlie and the JAL maintenance hangar. The main terminals are located to my back in this picture. To the left you can see the guard tower, manned 24 hours per day to keep an eye on this fellow. But here's the interesting or clever aspect of this situation. Do you see the little tower that rises from the roof of the building? It's a clock tower that faces directly at the guard tower. The guard is forced to observe a clock all day long and time drags when you constantly check the time. I'd like to meet this clever farmer, although I've never seen any activity around this property.

Here's a different angle that better depicts the guard and the clock tower as a JAL 747 taxi's past in the background.

And finally, here's an aerial view of the compound that really shows the position of the farmers home with regard to aircraft activity. He's situated between two major taxiways with the main terminals and the JAL maintenance hangars nearby. Mark... you and your son would never have to leave home again to take an aircraft shot if you lived here!

Before I get into my new post, let me send my congratulations to Justin Schlechter, who just had his first story, HOMECOMING, published in the December 2010 issue of AIRWAYS MAGAZINE. Justin is a 747-400 copilot; to learn more about him and his world-wide adventures, visit his blog at POSITIVE RATE. Congratulations Justin, you'll enjoy a wonderful relationship with the Weggs and everyone at AIRWAYS.

OK, after a fantastic Paris layover with Dave and Thad it's back to Asia again with layovers in Beijing, Narita and Guam before returning to SEA and commuting home.

Bill, to the right, and I had flown into SFO the afternoon before in a 757 and enjoyed a downtown layover where I indulged in another fine Italian dinner at my favorite San Francisco Italian restaurant on Polk Street. As good as it is though, no one beats my wife's Italian cooking. Bill and I met John here at the International terminal at SFO the next day to plot our course to Narita. We flew the Pacific on a random track south of Anchorage as Bill reads the coordinates and John plots them on our Pacific Orientation Chart. I'd flown the Quiet Bridge arrival the day before, so this would be Bill's leg uploading the route, leaving me to check and confirm the waypoints.

The Final Product

And this is how our orientation chart looks after completion. It's a little hard to see, but we leave SFO and fly north up the coast towards Seattle before turning out to sea over the North Pacific. We'll pass well south of Anchorage and turn more westerly near the end of the Aleutian Island Chain. You can see the fixed tracks above ours at this point. We'll fly south Sea of Okhotsk and skirt the Russian coast before entering Japanese airspace.

This route, chosen by our dispatcher, will keep us away from the strongest winds aloft and avoid several areas of scattered thunderstorms and turbulence. Our total flight time is predicted to be 10:52, ten hours fifty-two minutes to cover 4,573 nautical miles. Today's fuel load equals 144,700 pounds or roughly 21,600 gallons of gas... Jet-A to be specific.

As I'd mentioned earlier, this is Bill's leg so I'll go out and do the walk around inspection. This is a Boeing 767-332ER that since the merger hasn't seen the paint shop yet. I've always liked Delta's old red/blue widget tail; it was distinctive and easily recognizable in the marketplace and I could never figure out why they went to this wavy colored tail design. I suspect that it was change for the sake of change and didn't serve the corporation well.

On the other hand, Northwest created it's image (not necessarily always good) in 1948 with the "Red Tail" and maintained it until the merger with DAL on 2009. I've heard stories from business travelers arriving at Asian airports after being away from home for months, seeing the NWA red tail and feeling like they were home. It may sound corny but it's true and this is an excellent example of a marketing department creating a recognizable image.

Frankly, I'd like to see DAL return to its roots and resurrect the original widget and it's previous red/blue pilot wings; distinctive, marketable and recognizable images. At NWA we enjoyed the industry's most unusual pilots wings in the form of our "US Airmail" wings designed in 1929. I've written about them many times so won't bother to go into it again except to say that they set us apart.

Here's a little more information about our airplane that we'll fly today.

I've returned to the cockpit where Bill and John have finished most of their preflight assignments. In Bill's case, he activated the flight computers, fixed the aircrafts current position at the gate via the GPS and uploaded our flight plan, winds aloft and descent winds. John checked the aircraft logbook, checked the potable water level, waste tanks and is available to do anything else that crops up. After I get into my seat I'll preflight several panels, discuss the logbook with John and review the route uploaded into the computer and call for the Preflight checklist as passengers board and flight attendants make them comfortable.

I've also met with our Purser to discuss our route, weather, ETA and aircraft cabin systems. I always finish my brief with, "If it's important to you, it's important to me," which is my way of letting the purser know that I value their input. Let's face it, I'm very much removed from what goes on back here and will make decisions based on the flight attendants judgement.

We've pushed back from gate 10 at the International Terminal at SFO, have completed the before start checklist and have been cleared to start the engines. That's the first officers job now as I communicate with the tug driver, set the brakes and monitor the start.

Bill's completed both starts, we've been waved off, completed a before taxi checklist and I asked Bill to obtain a taxi clearance. This also signals him to extend the flaps to the five degree position. We've just been cleared to taxi to spot seven behind this Virgin America A-320. Believe it or not, but this is my first time leaving from the International Terminal at SFO as my previous Honolulu experience departed from the domestic terminal.

We're north of SEA and Vancouver headed towards Anchorage when United passed us by.

Nearly eleven hours later we broke out of a high overcast to land on runway 34R at Narita

Now we're at that hold point called "the north hold point" if I remember correctly as a DAL A-330 lands on 34R. As we taxied to the gate we saw five.... yes five company aircraft land so we need to scoot right along so we don't get stuck in the back of the customs line.

We're looking for gate 14 just around the corner past this 747. The great part about arriving at NRT is that the hotel will have several busses waiting in the pickup area for us. No waiting! This is only a nine day trip so Bill and I will spend six days in Asia flying to Guam and Beijing before flying flight 174 to SEA. That flight will cover 4,822 nautical miles in ten hours 52 minutes.

15 comments:

Nice pictures! Isn't that hold short line so far back because of the crook in the taxiway. I assume that bend in the taxiway is due to private property in the way of constructing a proper taxiway. As I understand it, Japan's property rights are very strict.

Rand,I truly wish I had the chain-link fence contract for NRT. Nice write-up. I share your thoughts on the red, white and blue widget-if you understood why marketing does some thing the way they do, you'd be the only one in 99% of our flightdecks...I look like a Soviet Admiral with the red & gold and braid.Tim 8DME W ORD

Dan, Yes land appropriation near NRT is contentious but I'm not sure if this particular taxiway is a part of that. All I know is if that guy taxi's on that taxiway while I land... there's trouble ahead! If you go back many posts you'll find pictures of farmers homes, surrounded by razorwire and guard towers within the confines of the airfield.Rand

After I made that post, I looked at Narita in google earth. You can see that taxiway is bent to go around some private property. You can also see that 34R is much shorter than the airport planners intended due to private property in the way.

Great read Rand! I was trying to remember - is Narita where the person still has his house in the middle of the field because of Imperial family involvement? I couldn't remember if you mentioned it in a previous blog or if it was a different airport...

You talk about the red tail - was just on a business trip to Nashville - managed to catch of the Compass E175's still with the red tail!

I saw that you and one of the co-pilots flew in from DTW. How do they route the Relief Pilot usually do they deadhead him or her in or do they come from another base?? Also do you know when your going to 744 training?

Mark,Yes, the farmers home surrounded by chainlink fence and razor wire is here at NRT. I'll put up a new pic at the end of this blogpost today.

John,Usually a relief pilot will spend many days plying the skies between the selected two cities, ie NRT/SFO, PEK/SEA or CDG/PHL simply changing crews on each crossing. For cities that aren't domiciles or domiciles without the required equipment, yes, they're deadheaded in. I just received my 744 manuals recently and am scheduled to start training in late February. Can't wait!

Thanks Rand!! Great info! Like you - I'd love to meet this guy - what a place!! My son looked and the pictures and said he'd love to live there (like me!!) - my wife however, rolled her eyes!! LOL...I guess we are staying in South Florida!!

Hi Rand, A friend and former Air West and Republic pilot before he resigned and went to work for Southwest Chip Lee sent me this photo album of a J-3 coast to coast round trip. I thought of you immediately and your Cub, which I think you sold. Knowing your love for photography I thought you'd enjoy these lovely pictures. Regards, Tom

Yes these pictures are fantastic, I've followed this fellow for some time. For more fantastic Super Cub and Alaskan photography, visit Shaun Lunt's site here:

http://shaunlunt.typepad.com/

An adventerious young man with an artists eye and a love of vintage aviation, he most unfortunately died in June 2008 while flying his Super Cub in Alaska. But Shaun left his mark with his love of the outdoors and photography for the rest of us to enjoy.

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Thanks for tuning in as I fly throughout North America, Europe and Asia in Boeing 757's and 767's and now the B-747-400. My goal is to put you in the left seat of a commercial jet and have you experience life aloft as well as the layovers that include sightseeing, exploration, fantastic dining experiences and time spent with my crews in Paris, Frankfurt, London, Beijing, Tokyo, Saipan and other exotic places. Flying jets and exploring the world has been an exciting way to make a living. I'd like to share some of that with you here.

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Do you need an aviation expert with 35 years of commercial aviation experience to turn to? Rand is an International airline captain, former part 121 simulator and line check air man, air show pilot and co-founder of an FAA part 135 airline flying Fairchild Metro III's throughout the northeast United States. He's consulted on a History Channel movie, is on call to ABC News in Manchester, NH and has appeared on several Evening News Magazines concerning vintage aviation. With more than 100 articles published in a variety of aviation magazines, and thousands of airline photographs in his collection, call to use his knowledge for your purposes.

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